Smith, Bryn Mawr, or Mount Holyoke?

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Barring any surprises (I got rejected from Barnard, and I know Tufts, Cornell and Penn are gigantic long shots at this point), I'll probably be choosing between Smith, Bryn Mawr, and Mount Holyoke for college next year. Does anyone have any input? I know all three are awesome schools and that I probably couldn't go wrong. I have not visited Bryn Mawr yet, though I will be doing so in the near future. All three have awesome academics. I've applied undecided, but I'm interested in English, history, international relations, psychology, and various cultural studies.</p>

<p>At the moment, Smith is my favorite. It has everything I want in a school- it's small enough so that I won't get lost, but large enough so that I could still meet new people. Northampton looks like an awesome town where everything is easily accessible, and between that and the consortium, I wouldn't feel isolated. I love the housing system and how it builds a community. If I go to Smith, I'd probably shoot for Upper Elm or Green Street. When I visited, it just felt like a fit. Smith and Mount Holyoke are about the same distance from where I live (5-6 hours).</p>

<p>Mount Holyoke would be about $5k cheaper than both Smith and Bryn Mawr. $20k of the aid they gave me was merit, so I wouldn't risk losing it as long as I keep my grades up. I could potentially graduate loan-free- with Smith and Bryn Mawr, I'd have to take out small ($2-3k/yr) loans. I really like the focus that Mount Holyoke has on internationalism and how they actively recruit international students. I could more easily access the consortium, as Amherst, Hampshire, and UMass are all closer to South Hadley than Northampton. South Hadley, however, is very quiet, and I dislike how everything's much less accessible than in Northampton.</p>

<p>Bryn Mawr sort of came out of nowhere. I hadn't looked into it for a long time because it's relatively close to home (though further than I thought initially- about 30-40 minutes). It'd be easy to go home if I needed to. Additionally, Bryn Mawr would actually accept my AP credits. The consortium with Haverford is much more convenient than the one that Smith and Mount Holyoke are part of, and I'd have easy access to Philly. I need to give Bryn Mawr a fair shot, but I also want to get out of the Main Line area.</p>

<p>I'm also considering UDel (OoS but with a $11k merit scholarship), Colgate, and Pitt, but all are second compared to Smith, Mount Holyoke, and Bryn Mawr. If you have anything to say about Delaware, Colgate, or Pitt, though, I'd be very interested. What do you think?</p>

2

<p>My younger daughter was accepted as a transfer to both Smith and Mt. Holyoke. She liked a lot of things about Mt. Holyoke more than Smith (she liked Smith too, but MH better initially), but it ended up coming down to Smith taking enough credits - transfer and AP - to place her as a sophomore, whereas Mt. Holyoke would have required an extra semester to graduate. Smith accepted some of my daughter’s AP credits, so double check if that would be the case for you as well. She has been very happy at Smith this year. She is majoring in English, and minoring in music. The financial aid was close to equal between MH and Smith.</p>

<p>My older daughter graduated from Colgate in 2008. She also majored in English. It was a much more “conservative” environment than Smith (relatively speaking). The financial aid was the best we have had with all of my kids so far.</p>

3

<p>Did you get into the UD honors program?</p>

4

<p>Thanks for the responses! My tour guide told me that Smith only takes AP credit if you’re taking a class and have to withdraw for some reason. If you have an AP credit for it, they’ll take that instead of a W. It might be different for transfer admissions, though. It’d be useful to have AP credit as a back up, but they don’t take it outright. I’m not sure about Colgate’s aid yet- they don’t ask for the FAFSA until you get in, so we sent them an updated report and are waiting for the new aid award.</p>

<p>I did get into the UDel honors program, though I’m trying to figure out what that entails. I also got into Pitt’s, but we were less impressed with it after visiting (though the honors dorms are really nice).</p>

5

<p>I think your tour guide was mistaken:</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>[Smith</a> College: Registrar](<a href=“http://www.smith.edu/registrar/transfer_credit.php]Smith”>http://www.smith.edu/registrar/transfer_credit.php)</p>

<p>[Advanced</a> Placement Credit](<a href=“http://www.smith.edu/registrar/documents/Equiv2010-2011.pdf]Advanced”>http://www.smith.edu/registrar/documents/Equiv2010-2011.pdf)</p>

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<p>Oh okay, thank you! That’s really good to know. I don’t think I’d use all of my AP credits, but they’d be good backup just in case.</p>

7

<p>Check the websites of all the colleges and universities that you have been accepted to, so that you can verify the details of their AP policies. Each place decides for itself which exams to give course credit and/or placement for.</p>

<p>All three of these are terrific options. You really can’t go wrong with any of them.</p>

8

<p>Pitt honors is nothing to sneeze at. I would be curious as to what the cost is vs the others. Holyoke and Smith give you the consortium, and I would opt for Smith if the cost difference is not too much to bear, if it is than Holyoke would be my choice. Oh a side note, getting around between the consortium is not bad if you are taking classes as shuttles run back and forth. Right now I would go Smith and Pitt would actually be my 2nd option if money is not a problem. Of course if the others come into play (Cornell, Tufts, Penn) that changes things potentially.</p>

9

<p>I would probably preference Bryn Mawr, Smith, and then Mt. Holyoke.</p>

<p>But you should visit BMC and then decide.</p>

10

<p>Oh no, I don’t mean to insult the honors program at Pitt, which is excellent. It just wasn’t exactly what I was looking for, though Pittsburgh is an awesome city :). I’m also in-state for Pitt, so it’s just slightly more expensive than MHC. I’m doing overnights at Smith, Bryn Mawr, and Mount Holyoke to really give them a fair shot. My parents are fine with the aid difference, although they are going to try appealing the Smith decision.</p>

<p>I like Bryn Mawr’s consortium slightly better than Smith’s and Mount Holyoke’s only because it’s more easily accessible. Smith is the furthest removed out of the five colleges, and I’ve heard that not as many Smith students take advantage of it because of that. It took 45 minutes driving to get from Smith to Mount Holyoke when we visited, and I’ve heard that it takes at least 30-45 minutes to get from Smith to Amherst on the shuttle bus.</p>

<p>The only game changers would be miraculous acceptances to either Tufts, Cornell, or Penn. However, I’m not holding my breath, and I prefer Smith to all three anyway.</p>

11

<p>you write that after visiting you felt that smith is a fit for you; what more needs to be
said?</p>

12

<p>Bryn Mawr, Smith, and Mount Holyoke are all excellent colleges. I’d rate them about equally academically. All three have beautiful campuses. My D1 visited all of them and fell in love with Bryn Mawr, partly for the campus vibe, partly for the location—she prefers being close to a big city, and Bryn Mawr give you convenient access to Philadelphia yet a quiet, bucolic campus location. She also liked the Quaker consortium and especially the Bi-Co relationship with Haverford, literally 5 minutes away by shuttle with a fully integrated Bi-Co course registration system that makes it incredible easy for BMC students to take classes at HC and vice versa. She also fell in love with Haverford which became her first choice, and that’s where she ended up after being accepted ED. But she’s taken some classes at BMC, has many friends there, even plays on a BMC club sports team in intercollegiate competition (along with several other HC students). Had no interest in Mt. Holyoke because she thought the location too isolated, and although she loved Northampton didn’t like Smith because of the house system, which she thought a little too clubby and sorority-like for her taste. Others are attracted to Smith precisely because of the house system. To each her own.</p>

<p>My D2 (still in HS) visited all three and likes Mount Holyoke and Bryn Mawr. Mount Holyoke’s emphasis on international studies and international student body are big attractions for her, as is the woodsy New England location. She felt what she describes as a “cozy,” welcoming, supportive vibe at both schools. Nothing against Smith, it just didn’t ring her chimes. DW says if she could do it all over again she’d go to Smith which of the three was most attractive to her. So there you have it.</p>

<p>It all comes down to personal preferences, but I think you’re on target in identifying the distinctive features of each: at Smith the house system and the town of Northampton, a genuinely great college town; at Mt. Holyoke the international emphasis and the rural New England location; at Bryn Mawr the consortium with Haverford and easy access to Philadelphia. I don’t think you can go wrong with that choice.</p>

13

<p>My D visited all 3 (plus Wellesley) and liked (in order): BM, Smith, Mt H. My order was BM, Mt H, then Smith. But these were minor distinctions. They were all great schools. They just have slightly different vibes. I’d summarize BM as being most academic / intellectual in feel, Smith as having the “strong women / in your face” vibe, and Mt H as being the most bucolic / isolated. Whether those things are good or bad - that’s in the eye of the beholder. You can’t go wrong with any of them and I’d have been fine with my D attending any of them if her ED choice of Wellesley hadn’t come through.</p>

14

<p>OP; your quote “Bryn Mawr sort of came out of nowhere” was exactly where my daughter was about a year ago. She had many of the same choices as you: Smith, MHC as well as others. Bryn Mawr; gorgeous campus within in a town, easy travel to Philly & beyond, plus Haverford is close by. Smith: winding campus anchors Northhampton. MHC: isolated campus. One year later, my freshman D loves Bryn Mawr; first for the academics, then for the camraderie and the traditions, the honor code, her job and last but not least, rugby team with Haverford kids. We can’t tell you where to go (rather we shouldn’t) it is such a personal decision; based on your background, where you see yourself.</p>

15

<p>Smith felt like a fit when I visited, but I want to be absolutely sure before making a decision. I haven’t even visited Bryn Mawr yet, and I might suddenly fall in love with it for all I know :). With MHC, I’d rather not be so isolated, although I love the emphasis on internationalism. I feel I didn’t do Mount Holyoke justice when I visited last fall, as it was the last of six college visits in two days.</p>

<p>This decision is going to be very difficult. Thanks for responding, though! I love different aspects of all three schools. I think Bryn Mawr would be the least isolated due to its proximity to Philly and Haverford, though I love Northampton.</p>